Iowa, 2002

Flash Flood in Iowa, August 23, 2002

August 23, 2002 · NWS OAX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Omaha, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 23, 1:15 AM CST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 23, 1:15 AM CST, 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
215 AM CDT FRI AUG 23 2002

HEAVY RAINS OVER PARTS OF CWA OVERNIGHT AND EARLY THIS AM HAVE
DUMPED GROUND TRUTH AMOUNTS OF SLIGHTLY OVER 2.00 IN 24HRS OVER
SOME LOCATIONS.  RADAR ESTIMATES UP TO 3-4 WILL LIKELY BE VERIFIED
ONCE REPORTS BEGIN TO FLOW IN LATER.  RADAR LOOPS CONTINUE TO SHOW
TRAINING STORMS. WITH STORMS CONTINUING TO BACK BUILD...FLASH FLOOD
THREAT WILL CONTINUE THRU MORNING.  CORFIDI VECTORS SHOW SLOW
MOVEMENT TO THE NE.  PER 00Z UAA...REGION UNDER RIGHT REAR QUAD OF
JET.  RUC HAS HAD GOOD HANDLE ON THE UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE THUS
FAR.  SHORTWAVE ASSOCIATED WITH THESE STORMS IS MOVING NEWD OVR NWRN
IA...WITH ANOTHER CIRCULATION OF NOTE OVER SWRN NEB RESPONSIBLE FOR
LINE OF CONVECTION MOVING NEWD.  THESE STORMS HAVE WEAKEND SOMEWHAT
LAST 45 MIN...BUT WL NEED TO MONITOR CLOSELY.  WL HAVE TO UP POPS
FOR MORNING HOURS ACROSS ENTIRE CWA.

AVN SEEMED TO HAVE BEST HANDLE ON THE CONVECTION OVR ERN NEB/SWRN
IA...BUT WASNT DOING WELL WITH ONGOING CONVECTION OVER SWRN NEB.
WL TREND END OF PRECIP FROM NW TO SE TDY WITH CONVECTION ENDING OVER
THE SE BY EARLY AFTERNOON.

NEXT SHORTWAVE COMES ROLLING INTO NWRN NEB LATER TONIGHT.  FROM
HERE...MODELS DIVERGE...AND SO HAVE TAKEN A BLEND.  HAVE BOOSTED
POPS FOR TONIGHT...SAT...SAT NIGHT.  ETA IS MUCH MORE AGRESSIVE WITH
SHORTWAVES THAN AVN.

OVERALL HAVE MADE MINOR CHANGES TO TEMPS THRU FORECAST.

.OMA...NONE.

GRIFFIS

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 22, 7:55 PM CST, 5 hours 35 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
855 PM CDT THU AUG 22 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

830 PM     5 S STANTON               NE   60 MPH TSTM GUST
08/22/02   STANTON                        REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER.
Local storm report, Aug 22, 8:46 PM CST, 4 hours 44 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
946 PM CDT THU AUG 22 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0942 PM    9 NW OMAHA EPPLEY AIRFIEL NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   WASHINGTON                     REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER.
Local storm report, Aug 22, 11:15 PM CST, 2 hours 15 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
1213 PM CDT FRI AUG 23 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

900 PM     5 W LINCOLN               NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   LANCASTER                      HEAVY RAIN REPORTED BY
                                          LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

941 PM     CERESCO                   NE   .75 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   SAUNDERS                       REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER. EVENT DURATION
                                          3 MINUTES.

1045 PM    LINCOLN                   NE   .75 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   LANCASTER                      REPORTED BY PUBLIC.

1110 PM    LA VISTA                  NE   WIND DAMAGE
08/21/02   SARPY                          ESTIMATED 60 MPH WINDS
                                          WITH POWER LINES AND
                                          TREES DOWN, REPORTED BY
                                          LAW ENFORCEMENT
                                          OFFICIAL. EVENT
                                          DURATION 15 MINUTES.

1110 PM    CERESCO                   NE   WIND DAMAGE
08/21/02   SAUNDERS                       EVENT DURATION 15
                                          MINUTES.

1112 PM    BELLEVUE                  NE   .75 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   SARPY                          REPORTED BY MEDIA.

1115 PM    LINCOLN                   NE   .88 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   LANCASTER

1115 PM    LINCOLN                   NE   WIND DAMAGE
08/21/02   LANCASTER                      TREES DOWN AND SKYLIGHT
                                          BLOWN OFF OF CHURCH,
                                          REPORTED BY EMERGENCY
                                          MANAGEMENT.

1145 PM    LINCOLN                   NE   .88 INCH HAIL
08/21/02   LANCASTER                      SCATTERED REPORTS OF
                                          TREES AND POWER LINES
                                          DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.

 642 PM    9 NW ALBION               NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   BOONE                          REPORTED BY COOPERATIVE
                                          OBSERVER. EVENT
                                          DURATION 5 MINUTES.

 653 PM    5 N ALBION                NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   BOONE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

 658 PM    ALBION                    NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   BOONE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

 658 PM    5 N ALBION                NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   BOONE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

 755 PM    2 NE NEWMAN GROVE         NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   MADISON                        HAIL COVERING THE
                                          GROUND REPORTED BY
                                          PUBLIC.

 828 PM    MADISON                   NE   .75 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   MADISON                        REPORTED BY PUBLIC.

 830 PM    5 S STANTON               NE   60 MPH TSTM GUST
08/22/02   STANTON                        REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER.

 942 PM    9 NW OMAHA EPPLEY AIRFIEL NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/22/02   WASHINGTON                     REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER.
Local storm report, Aug 23, 12:59 AM CST, 31 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
159 AM CDT FRI AUG 23 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0150 AM    2 E ASHLAND               NE   FLOOD
08/23/02   SARPY                          US HWY 6 UNDER 2 TO 3
                                          FEET OF WATER AND
                                          MUD.REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.
Local storm report, Aug 23, 1:03 AM CST, 27 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
203 AM CDT FRI AUG 23 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1145 PM    PLATTSMOUTH               NE   FLOOD
08/22/02   CASS                           HWY 66 UNDER WATER EAST
                                          OF LOUISVILLE TO CEDAR
                                          CRK SPUR.  PLATTSMOUTH
                                          STREETS FLOODED.
                                          CITIZEN HAD TO BE
                                          RESCUED FROM CAR
                                          STALLED IN FLOOD
                                          WATERS. REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

The radar

The Omaha radar (KOAX), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 07:27 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Mills

When
August 23, 1:30 AM CST to 3:30 AM CST
Where
Mills County, West Portion
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
41.034, -95.621 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy rain producing thunderstorms tracked across southeast Nebraska and southwest Iowa during the late evening Thursday (8/22) and Friday morning (8/23). For some areas it was the second night in a row of heavy rain. Flooding in western Mills county included the evacuation of residents near Keg Creek near Glenwood due to flood waters. New power poles were undermined due to severe flooding on 190th street near Pacific Jct. Rainfall in southwest Iowa included 3.14 inches in Glenwood and 2.29 inches at Hamburg.

What these are

Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, August 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5315298.